Poachers’ prey on display

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Published: 25 July, 2007, 09:31

The State Darwin Museum in Moscow is presenting a new show called “The Sea Wanderers”. All the items on display are stuffed turtles illegally brought to the country and confiscated by the Russian customs service.

Sea turtles have been hunted all over the world for years, and scientists claim that they could become a thing of the past in little more than three decades if no measures to protect them are taken.

They are mainly killed because of their tasty meat and eggs which are regarded as a very sophisticated dish. But their lives are also in danger as the seas are polluted. People throw plastic bags into the water and turtles often try to eat them and then die.

Olga Strelkova,

State Darwin Museum senior researcher

The scientists have been trying to reverse the decline in the turtle population for years. They track down their migration routes and protect them from predators. Turtles are especially vulnerable during the first minutes of their lives when they emerge from the sand. Hungry seagulls, crabs and humans are their greatest enemies.

Though poachers are mostly interested in fully grown adults and if it hadn't been for the Russian customs officials, the rare stuffed turtles on display would have been sold as souvenirs.

Visitors to the exhibition can find out a lot more about the creatures of the deep and also learn just how to get turtle souvenirs without harming them.

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